10 iOS Football Games for the 2013 NFL Season

The 2013 National Football League season finally kicks off tonight, and it's been a long wait since the Ravens toppled the 49ers in Super Bowl XLVII way back in February. Luckily, the season never has to stop in the video game world. In recent weeks, a couple of notable new releases have popped up, while others have been refreshed for the impending season. With the real games about to start up, here's an updated look at 10 of the most notable football games for iPhone and iPad. Not all of these are winners, but if you're craving pigskin action around the clock, surely a few of these options will scratch that itch.

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Football Games on iOS

Coming into the 2013 season, the best fully-featured NFL game on the App Store is… two years old? It's sad yet true, but Madden NFL 12 ($4.99/iPhone, $6.99/iPad) is the last premium entry in the series and lacks the free-to-play nonsense seen in this year's Madden NFL 25. It may not be a spectacular (or attractive) sim, but at least it's solid on the field.

Freshly rebranded (from NFL Shuffle) and stocked for the new season, NFL Elite 13 (Free, Universal) approaches the sport in a very different way than Madden, tasking you with building up a deck full of player cards and then battling through each play using the ones that pop up. It's built to reward ample time investment, thanks to the ability to train players and unlock free bonus cards.

If you love the running game in football, then Backbreaker 2: Vengeance ($0.99, Universal) is for you. Using a behind-the-back perspective, it sends you off on well-animated jaunts through defenders or obstacle courses, putting you in full control of his dodges, jumps, and even showboating moves. The sequel adds the ability to also play defense and dish out a little violence, as well.

Kickers may not engage in the most physical parts of the game, but their moments in the spotlight can make or break a game (or an entire season). NFL Kicker 13 ($0.99, Universal) focuses less on the tension of such moments and more on fun, using a flick-based kicking motion to drive an arcade-style game in which you'll aim to constantly hit the sweet spot through the uprights

Mining different territory while using a similar mechanic (it's from the same developer), NFL Quarterback 13 ($0.99, Universal) challenges you to flick the ball out to receivers while taking the role of an NFL QB. There's a bit more happening here than in NFL Kicker, since you can swap receivers and trigger slow-mo, adding some extra strategy to the approach.

As detailed in our recent review, Madden NFL 25 (Free, Universal) sadly does not do justice to the legendary football franchise, sinking the simplified action with free-to-play roadblocks that kill much of the fun. If you don't mind playing slowly and using a small set of plays, there's a half-decent game of ball within, and it looks rather nice. But it's a disappointing simulation on the whole.

Another card-centric experience, NFL Matchups (Free, iPhone) similarly finds you building a team via collectable player cards, but tosses in simple mini-games, like tapping targets on the screen to complete passes during practice. The interface is really busy and overloaded, and the game lacks visual pop, but for those who love amassing digital cards, it'll surely keep you busy.

Unlike the other card-based games on this list, Big Win Football (Free, Universal) doesn't boast an NFL license or real-life player images. That might sap the intrigue for some players, but it allows this free-to-play affair to take a decidedly more cartoonish and customizable approach. You'll still assemble a team and upgrade players, but there's a lighter tone to the action here.

Gameloft's NFL Pro 2014 (Free, Universal) has thankfully been enhanced from its utterly awful previous iteration, but it's still hugely lacking. Most of the plays are locked behind level (or money) barriers, there's no real stadiums or NFL players, and the presentation still underwhelms. Given the choice between this and the also-freemium Madden NFL 25, go with the latter.